Commentary by Michael Barone

With Absolute Power, Team Obama Grows Stupid By Michael Barone

How could such smart people do so many stupid things? That question, or variations on it, is being asked in Washington and around the country about the Obama administration.

Public-sector Unions Bleed Taxpayers to Help Dems By Michael Barone

Growing up in Michigan in the heyday of the United Auto Workers, I long assumed that labor unions were part of the natural order of things.

How Climate-Change Fanatics Corrupted Science By Michael Barone

Quick, name the most distrusted occupations. Trial lawyers? Pretty skuzzy, as witness the disgraced John Edwards, kept from the vice presidency in 2004 by the electoral votes of Ohio. Used car dealers? Always near the bottom of the list, as witness the universal understanding of the word "clunker."

Obama Impresses 'Educated Class' But Not Terrorists By Michael Barone

Just whom are we trying to impress?

That's a question that occurred to me when, on his second full day in the presidency, Barack Obama announced we would close the Guantanamo detainee facility within one year.

Dems Fall as Fast as Nixon Republicans in 1974 By Michael Barone

Republican Scott Brown's victory in Massachusetts' special Senate election was for Democratic leaders a moment that can be described in two words, of which I will only print the first here, which is "oh."

Voters Spurn the 'Boob Bait' of the Educated Class By Michael Barone

When the New York Times columnist David Brooks first sat down with Barack Obama, they talked a lot about Burke. That's Edmund Burke, the 18th century conservative British politician and philosopher. Not Jimmy Burke, the 20th century Massachusetts pol, who said that all you had to know to serve in Congress was "Social Security and shoes."

Little Guy Sends Message to Washington: Drop Dead By Michael Barone

The final percentages aren't in as this is written, but it's plain that Republican Scott Brown defeated Democrat Martha Coakley by a substantial margin in the race for the remainder of the late Edward Kennedy's Senate term. In Massachusetts. The state that in the last four presidential elections has voted on average 61 percent Democratic and 33 percent Republican. That's a bigger margin than in any other state.

Dems' Lock on Senate Is Mixed Blessing for Obama By Michael Barone

Year One of the Obama administration ends Wednesday. Another era may come to an end the day before, when Massachusetts voters -- or at least those of them motivated enough to vote -- choose a senator to fill the three years remaining in the term of Edward Kennedy, who held the seat for 47 years.

Obama's Rapturous Style Versus Tea Party Substance By Michael Barone

In his New York Times column last week, David Brooks contrasted "the educated class," which supports Barack Obama and his liberal worldview, with the tea party movement, "a large, fractious confederation of Americans who are defined by what they are against ... the concentrated power of the educated class."

Imagine Waugh Writing About the Christmas Bomber By Michael Barone

In Evelyn Waugh's novel "Scoop," the best book on journalism ever written, Lord Copper, proprietor of the Daily Beast, is followed around by a flunkie who responds to every statement he makes. When Lord Copper says something that is true, the flunkie says, "Absolutely, Lord Copper." When he says something that is false, the flunkie says, "Up to a point, Lord Copper."

Can Cocksure Obama Change Course -- and Keep His Nerve? By Michael Barone

A year ago, I was privileged to be one of several guests at a dinner with President-elect Barack Obama. One thing that struck me and others, aside from his courtesy and fluency, was his air of self-confidence.

It's a Wonderful Life Working for the Government By Michael Barone

It looks like a happy new year for you -- if you're a public employee.

Texas Shows Its Swagger in New Population Estimates By Michael Barone

Every year roundabout Christmastime, the Census Bureau releases its population estimates for each state for the 12 months ending on July 1. The numbers look dry on a sheet of paper (or on an Excel spreadsheet on your computer), but they tell some vivid stories. The more so when they reflect, as the numbers for 2008-09 do, the effects of a sharp downward shift in the nation's economy.

When Legerdemain Is Used to Pass an Unpopular Bill By Michael Barone

It's time to blow the whistle on two erroneous statements that opponents and proponents of the health care legislation being jammed through Congress have been making.

When Liberal Dreams Collide With Public Opinion By Michael Barone

In the Bella Center on the south side of Copenhagen and in the Senate chamber on the north side of the Capitol, we're seeing what happens when liberal dreams collide with American public opinion. It's like what happens when a butterfly collides with the windshield of a speeding SUV. Splat.

Amid Rumbling Discontent, Dems Head for the Exits By Michael Barone

While Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid scrambles to assemble 60 Democratic votes for health care legislation that, according to the realclearpolitics.com average of recent polls, is opposed by a 53 percent to 38 percent margin, several Democratic members of the House are scrambling for the exits on what is starting to look like a sinking ship.

Could Obama's Speeches Reflect a Foreign Policy Shift? By Michael Barone

"Evil does exist in the world." This bald assertion is probably not what the Norwegian grantors of the Nobel Peace Prize expected to hear from Barack Obama. It sounds like something that the definer of the axis of evil might say, without the Texas twang.

Misusing Knowledge to Expand Government Power By Michael Barone

"Knowledge is becoming more specialized and more dispersed, while government power is becoming more concentrated," writes economist Arnold Kling in his new book, "Unchecked and Unbalanced." "This discrepancy creates the potential for government to become increasingly erratic and, as a result, less satisfying to individuals."

Professor Obama as Dutiful Commander in Chief By Michael Barone

Every time I visit the White House, I am struck by its military environment.

Big Government Can't Put Young Americans to Work By Michael Barone

"What have you done for me lately?" It's a question that voters implicitly ask politicians, especially ones they have supported and who are seeking their votes again. And it's a question that young voters in particular may be asking Barack Obama, whom they supported by a 66 percent to 32 percent margin 13 months ago.